Selective deposition modeling methods for improved support-object interface
There are provided method and apparatus for the forming of three-dimensional objects in a layered fashion, wherein improvements are made to the support structure to improve the quality of the resulting three-dimensional objects. The support structure may include encapsulation along the interface boundary of the support-object interface to prevent or reduce the likelihood of separation of the build material, that forms the three-dimensional object, from the support material, that forms the support structure, or vice versa. The support structure may also or alternatively include both a porous support structure and a solid support structure to prevent or reduce the likelihood of separation of the support structure from the build platform and to improve the quality of the down-facing surfaces of the three-dimensional object. Methods are also provided for selectively depositing the support material and build material and for encapsulating the interface boundary with support material.
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The present invention is related to selective deposition modeling of three dimensional objects, and more particularly, to methods for improved support-object interface and improved object surface features.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONSelective deposition modeling is one form of solid freeform fabrication, also known as additive manufacturing, for forming three-dimensional objects from computer aided design (CAD) data or other data defining the object to be made. Selective deposition modeling, sometimes referred to as 3D printing, is generally described in prior art patents, that include, but are not limited to, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,999,143; 5,501,824; 5,695,707; 6,133,355; 6,162,378; 6,193,923; and 6,270,335 that are assigned to the assignee of the present application and the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.
Selective deposition modeling often includes the depositing of a build material to form the object and a support material that supports the build material during the forming of the object. The support material is typically removed after the object has been formed. Because the support material and build material may have different chemical and/or mechanical properties, selective deposition modeling with both materials can lead to undesirable effects, such as undesired surface features on the object being formed or undesired separation of one material from an adjoining surface of a different material that may result in inaccuracies in the final object.
Some prior art solutions to problems created by the use of support material and build material include providing a third material, such as an interface material. One example of a prior art solution that includes a distinct interface material is provided by U.S. Pat. No. 7,364,686, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. However, providing a third material adds complexity and cost to the selective deposition modeling device and processes.
Therefore it is desirable to provide methods and apparatus for forming three-dimensional objects that include minimal or no undesirable surface features resulting from the interfaces created between the build material and/or the support material with one another and/or with other surfaces or materials.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe various embodiments of the present invention provide methods and apparatus for improving the surface quality of the final three-dimensional object by improving the shape and/or design of the support structure created with the support material. For example, the support structure of certain embodiments of the present invention encapsulate an interface boundary defined along the perimeter of a support-object interface. The support-object interface is the area of contact, in the direction of the z-axis, between the build material and the support material. By encapsulating the interface boundary, these embodiments of the present invention minimize or eliminate the likelihood that the support material and the build material would undesirably separate from one another, which can lead to undesirable surface features on the final object. For example, the encapsulation in some embodiments provides a vacuum around the interface boundary, thus making it much more difficult for the support material and the build material to separate from one another. In another example, the encapsulation in other embodiments mechanically provides structural support to prevent or minimize undesirable separation of the support material and build material. In yet another example, the encapsulation of still further embodiments provides a combination of a partial vacuum and partial structural support that also prevents or minimizes undesirable separation of the support material and build material.
Additional embodiments of the present invention improve the down-facing surfaces of the object by improving the support-object interface. Some prior art techniques for preventing or minimizing undesirable separation of the support material and build material include providing a porous support structure of support material upon which the first layer (along the z-axis) of build material is deposited. This prior art technique provides additional surface area of contact between the support material and build material because a certain amount of build material can creep into some openings of the porous support structure such that the support-object interface is not just defined along a plane in the x-y axes but also defined by protruding (generally along the z-axis) amounts of build material into the openings of the support structure. One disadvantage of this approach is the resulting surface quality of the down-facing surface of the resulting three-dimensional object that must be post-processed to remove the tiny protrusions of build material. Such post-processing may include manually or automatically sanding the down-facing surfaces and/or exposing the down-facing surface to a solvent that removes a certain amount of build material. However, these and other post-processing steps add time and expense to the overall process for forming three-dimensional objects and they impose additional variables that can result in alternative undesirable surface features, such as by the use of too much sanding or too much solvent at some or all of the down-facing surfaces of the three-dimensional object. Some embodiments of the present invention overcome these problems by providing a solid support structure that defines a substantially smooth up-facing surface of the support structure so that the first layer of build material that is deposited on the solid support structure (the build material that results in the down-facing surface of the three-dimensional object) is substantially smooth. By providing a substantially smooth down-facing surface of the build material, the embodiments of the present invention eliminate or reduce the amount of post-processing required to improve the surface features of the three-dimensional object.
Certain embodiments of the present invention that selectively deposit the build material onto a solid support structure provide the solid support structure on a porous support structure. Providing a solid support structure directly on the platform of the selective deposition modeling apparatus can often lead to undesirable separation of the support structure from the platform during cooling of the support material comprising the support structure. The build process can be slowed down to reduce the likelihood of the support structure separating from the platform; however, such increases in build time directly reduce the productivity of the selective deposition modeling apparatus thus resulting in additional costs, including lost opportunity costs, to the operator of the apparatus. The undesirable separation of the support structure from the platform can lead to distortion of the support material and/or build material above the distortion thus creating undesirable features on the three-dimensional object. Certain embodiments of the present invention overcome this problem by first providing a porous support structure on the platform and then providing a solid support structure on the porous support structure. Still further embodiments of the present invention provide a transition support structure that transitions from the porous support structure to the solid support structure to provide adequate structural strength to the transition from porous to solid.
Still further embodiments of the present invention combine certain aspects of the embodiments described above and/or add additional or alternative aspects to the embodiments described above. Therefore, the various embodiments of the present invention provide improved control over the surface quality of the final three-dimensional object being formed by minimizing the likelihood of, or eliminating altogether, any undesirable separation of the support material and build material from one another or from other surfaces, such as the build platform.
Having thus described the invention in general terms, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale and are meant to be illustrative and not limiting, and wherein:
The present invention now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some, but not all embodiments of the invention are shown. Indeed, the invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will satisfy applicable legal requirements. Although apparatus and methods for eliminating and/or reducing the likelihood and extent of undesired surface features on three-dimensional objects are described and shown in the accompanying drawings with regard to specific types of selective deposition modeling techniques, it is envisioned that the functionality of the various apparatus and methods may be applied to any now known or hereafter devised methods and apparatus for the formation of three-dimensional objects in which it is desired to selectively deposit materials in a manner that eliminates or reduces the likelihood that the materials will create undesirable surface features on the resulting three-dimensional objects. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout. The term “selectively deposit” and variations thereof include techniques for depositing build material and/or support material that include, but are not limited to, techniques that include ink jetting (from print heads, nozzles, and the like), fused deposition modeling, moving dispenser(s) with a plotter-type device, and the like.
In the prior art embodiment of
The support structure 14 of
As noted above, a separation of support material may occur at an interface between the support material and the build material. For example,
One conventional technique for preventing the separation of the support material from the build material at the support-object interface is to provide a support-object interface that does not provide a smooth plane. The support-object interface is the area of contact, in the direction of the z-axis, between the build material and the support material. The prior art typically provides a support structure that has the same footprint as the three-dimensional object, such that viewing along the z-axis, the shape of the object in the x- and y-axes is generally the shape of the support structure. However, unless the down-facing surface of the three-dimensional object is a flat plane defined in the same layer of selective deposition, there will be some contact of build material and support material in the direction of the x-axis and/or y-axis based upon the object having down-facing surfaces at different layers, thus providing vertical sides that contact the support material in the x-axis and/or y-axis directions. This contact of build material and support material in the direction of the x-axis and/or y-axis is generally not included in the support-object interface of concern in the present invention. The prior art technique of providing a non-smooth plane at the support-object interface creates additional area of contact between the build material and support material because small amounts of build material migrate into the openings of the porous support structure (or vice versa), thus increasing the ability of the materials to resist separation from one another as the materials cool and stresses are created.
By creating or permitting such migration of build material into the porous support structure (or vice versa), undesired surface features are created because the resulting down-facing surfaces of the three-dimensional object will not be smooth (or the resulting up-facing surfaces in the case of depositing support material on a non-smooth up-facing surface of build material). For example,
Turning now to the prior art representation of
Because the support structure 114 and three-dimensional object 110 are built in a layer-by-layer process, the timing and extent of the separation 126 or 128 has a direct impact on the presence and/or significance of the resulting defect, 128 and 134, respectively. For example, if the separation occurs long before the first layer of build material is selectively deposited above and/or adjacent the separation, the amount of support material that is removed with a planarizer or other devices, as known in the art, from the intervening layers of support material may compensate to some extent for the deformation created by the separation. Conversely, if the separation occurs shortly before the first layer of build material is selectively deposited above and/or adjacent the separation, the apparatus and method will have fewer layers of intervening support material that can compensate for the separation, thus making it more likely that the resulting defect will be present and/or more significant. Therefore, the size, shape, timing, and other variables relating to the separation have a direct impact on the presence and/or significance of the defect in the formed three-dimensional object. Accordingly, various embodiments of the present invention eliminate and/or reduce the likelihood of separation occurring in the first place, thus ensuring that a defect will not result.
Turning now to one embodiment of the present invention,
The three-dimensional object 210 of the embodiment of
The term “encapsulating,” “encapsulation,” and variations thereof as used herein to describe the embodiments of the present invention and to recite the claimed invention comprise the selective deposition of support material, or the deposited support material itself, proximate the interface boundary of the support-object interface that eliminate or reduce the likelihood of separation of the build material and support material from one another. These terms include the selective deposition of support material beyond (in the plane of the x- and y-axes) the cross-section area (as viewed along the z-axis) of the down-facing surfaces of the three-dimensional objects and include the selective deposition of support material above (in the direction of the z-axis) the perimeters of the down-facing surfaces. Although providing a vacuum at the interface boundary is one desirable aspect of certain embodiments of the present invention, the terms “encapsulating,” “encapsulation,” and variations thereof do not necessarily require that a vacuum be present or provided at the interface boundary. The terms include the deposition of support material in any fashion that provides resistance, for example by increased structural strength at the support-object interface or by providing a vacuum at or near the support-object interface, to the tendency of the build material and support material to separate from one another during the build process.
The vacuum provided by the encapsulations 246, 346, and 446 of the embodiments of
Alternative embodiments of the present invention, that do not provide a vacuum along the entire interface boundary or that provide only partial vacuums at predetermined locations along the interface boundary, also or alternatively provide structural resistance to separation at the support-object interface. More specifically, certain embodiments of the present invention selectively deposit support material that contacts the vertical sides of the three-dimensional object defined by the build material above the support-object interface. This contact of support material on the sides of the build material provides a force that resists movement of the build material relative to the support material. A non-limiting example of relative movement is the curling of build material away from the support-object interface. The encapsulation provides a force that counteracts the tendency of the build material to curl or otherwise move, thus preventing the curl or movement. Once additional layers have been deposited and/or once the build process is complete and post-processing is undertaken, the tendency of build material and/or support material to have relative movement will have abated such that removal of the support material (including the encapsulation) will not lead to movement of the build material alone (which would result in a defect in the three-dimensional object). The amount of force desired to prevent the relative movement of build material and support material can be predetermined (by the build software or manually) so that the portions of the encapsulation can be sized and shaped accordingly. In other words, the height, width, thickness, and geometry of the encapsulation can be predetermined to provide the appropriate structural strength to prevent or reduce the likelihood of separation at the support-object interface.
Turning once again to the embodiment of the present invention represented in
The thickness of the encapsulations 246 and 346 of
The encapsulation techniques of certain embodiments of the present invention also include providing support material at the support-object interface when support material is deposited on previously deposited build material. For example, in order to make the adjustable wrench 122 of
Turning now to
Turning again to the embodiment illustrated in
Because the embodiment of
The embodiment of the present invention illustrated in
The present invention also, provides many methods for forming a three-dimensional object in successive layers in accordance with data defining the object. The data defining the object is typically computer aided design (CAD) data representative of the three-dimensional object, as understood by one skilled in the art. The CAD data of certain embodiments of the present invention is contained in an STL file (or other file format) that is communicated to the apparatus for forming three-dimensional objects or to a computer in communication with the apparatus for forming three-dimensional objects. The object is made from a build material and the object is supported by a support material during a build process. The layers are successively deposited along a z-axis. The method comprises, in any order possible, (1) determining for a plurality of regions of the object a first layer of build material to be selectively deposited, (2) selectively depositing the support material on a platform to provide a porous support structure; (3) determining for the plurality of regions of the object a first layer of support material to be deposited to provide a transition support structure and/or a solid support structure; (4) selectively depositing the support material on the porous support structure to provide the transition support structure and/or a solid support structure; and (5) selectively depositing the build material on the solid support structure to provide a substantially smooth down-facing surface for the build material. The determining operations may be completed prior to selectively depositing any materials and/or the determining operations may be performed during the selective depositing of earlier layers of the build process. The determining operations may include provide a predetermined number of layers for the porous support material, the transition support material, and/or the solid support material, relative to one another and/or relative to the first layer of build material to be selectively deposited above the respective support structure(s).
Further methods of the present invention for forming a three-dimensional object in successive layers include the operations of (1) selectively depositing the support material on a platform to provide a support structure; (2) selectively depositing the build material on the support structure to define the object wherein the area of contact, in the direction of the z-axis, between the build material and the support material defines a support-object interface and an interface boundary along a perimeter of the support-object interface; and (3) encapsulating the interface boundary with support material. The encapsulating of various embodiments of the invention encapsulates either all of the interface boundary or a substantial portion of the interface boundary sufficient to prevent separation of the build material from the support material during the build process. The encapsulating operation may provide a vacuum for the support-object interface and/or provide structural support to the support-object interface; both of which prevent or inhibit any separation of the build material from the support material during the build process. The encapsulating operation of various embodiments of the present invention comprise depositing only a single layer of support material that contacts a vertical side defined by the build material, any number of layers of support material that contact a vertical side defined by the build material, and the same number of layers of support material as build material such that the support material contacts substantially all of a vertical side defined by the build material. The methods of certain embodiments of the present invention comprise removing the support material from the build material after the selective depositing is complete (after the build process). The techniques for removing the support material include, but are not limited to, heating the build material and support material to cause the support material to separate from the build material, applying solvent to the support material to cause the support material to separate from the build material, and/or manually removing the support material from the build material.
Many modifications and other embodiments of the invention set forth herein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to which the invention pertains having the benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed and that modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. It is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents. Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.
The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing” are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, but not limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention.
Claims
1. A method of forming a three-dimensional object in successive layers in accordance with data defining the object, wherein the object is made from a build material and the object is supported by a support material during a build process and wherein the layers are successively deposited along a z-axis, the method comprising:
- selectively depositing the support material on a platform to provide a support structure, wherein the support structure comprises a porous support structure that is proximate the platform and a solid support structure that is deposited on the porous support structure opposite the porous support structure from the platform;
- selectively depositing the build material on the support structure to define the object wherein the area of contact, in the direction of the z-axis, between the build material and the support material defines a support-object interface and an interface boundary along a perimeter of the support-object interface; and
- encapsulating the interface boundary with support material.
2. A method according to claim 1, wherein encapsulating the interface boundary comprises encapsulating a substantial portion of the interface boundary sufficient to prevent separation of the build material from the support material during the build process.
3. A method according to claim 1, wherein encapsulating the interface boundary provides a vacuum for the support-object interface.
4. A method according to claim 1, wherein encapsulating the interface boundary comprises depositing at least one layer of support material that contacts a vertical side defined by the build material above the support-object interface.
5. A method according to claim 1, wherein selectively depositing the support material comprises dispensing at least one layer of support material substantially free of openings at the support-object interface.
6. A method according to claim 1, wherein selectively depositing the support material comprises providing a transition support structure between the porous support structure and the solid support structure.
7. A method according to claim 1, wherein a first layer of the solid support structure that is selectively deposited is a predetermined number of layers below a lowermost down-facing surface of the build material to be deposited.
8. A method of forming a three-dimensional object in successive layers in accordance with data defining the object, wherein the object is made from a build material and the object is supported by a support material during a build process and wherein the layers are successively deposited along a z-axis, the method comprising:
- selectively depositing the support material on a platform too provide a porous support structure;
- determining for a plurality of regions of the object at layer of build material to be selectively deposited;
- determining for the plurality of regions of the object a first layer of support material to be deposited to provide a solid support structure, wherein the solid support structure is positioned between the porous support structure and the build material;
- selectively depositing the support material on the porous support structure to provide the solid support structure; and
- selectively depositing the build material on the solid support structure to provide a substantially smooth down-facing surface for the build material.
9. A method according to claim 8, wherein selectively depositing the support material on the porous support structure to provide the solid support structure comprises dispensing at least one layer of support material substantially free of openings at the support-object interface.
10. A method according to claim 8 further comprising selectively depositing the support material on the porous support structure to provide a transition support structure between the porous support structure and the solid support structure.
11. A method according to claim 10, wherein selectively depositing the support material to provide the transition support structure comprises dispensing support material that reduces at least one of the size and number of openings in the deposited support material as the transition support structure extends vertically along the z-axis.
12. A method according to claim 8, wherein a first layer of the solid support structure that is selectively deposited is a predetermined number of layers below a lowermost down-facing surface of the build material to be deposited.
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Type: Grant
Filed: Jun 15, 2010
Date of Patent: Nov 27, 2012
Patent Publication Number: 20110304074
Assignee: 3D Systems, Inc. (Rock Hill, SC)
Inventors: Hongqing Vincent Wang (Fort Mill, SC), Pavan Kumar (Rock Hill, SC), John Stockwell (Sylmar, CA), Khalil Moussa (Charlotte, NC), Rajeev Kulkami (Charlotte, NC)
Primary Examiner: Galen Hauth
Attorney: Keith Roberson
Application Number: 12/815,890
International Classification: B29C 35/04 (20060101);